The invention concerns a network server for the provision of services in a telephone network, wherein the network server is provided with a first communications unit for communication with elements of the telephone network.
The invention is based on the provision of services within a telephone network by means of the IN (intelligent network) architecture. The provision of such a service by a network server having a database is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,345,502.
Mobile radio terminals are interconnected via a telephone network that has switching centers, which provide the function of service switching centers of an IN architecture. On the basis of a service identification entered in a call request, these switching centers initiate the setting-up of a data circuit to a network server, which provides the function of a service control unit in the IN architecture. The network server can initiate the rerouting of communications circuits through the telephone network by sending control commands, among other things.
In order to establish a telephone circuit between two mobile radio terminals through the telephone network, the telephone number dailed by the subscriber of the calling mobile radio terminal is transmitted to the network server via the data circuit. By means of a database, the network server then determines the location of the subscriber to which this telephone number is allocated, and then determines routing information assigned to this location. The routing information determined in this way is sent back via the data circuit to the calling mobile radio terminal, which then establishes a telephone circuit to the called mobile radio terminal by means of this routing information.
The object of the invention is now to enable the provision of further more complex services by a network server.
In this connection, the invention is based on the idea of offering by means of the network server a personal network service that provides a user with a first access interface via which, preferably by means of an IP (Internet protocol) terminal, he can create a personal, hierarchically structured database having a personal, hierarchical data structure in the network server, and provides a second access interface via which the user can read data from his personal database by means of a telephone terminal.
The advantage of the invention is that it enables a large number of new, content-related services to be realized in a telephone network. Furthermore, this further improves the user friendliness of the telephone network and the added value being offered to the telephone network subscribers.